


this place that cannot change

by usoverlooked



Category: Community (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-12-14
Updated: 2013-12-14
Packaged: 2018-01-04 14:08:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,088
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1081926
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/usoverlooked/pseuds/usoverlooked
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jeff expects to see them all less once he graduates. He expects to be a little lonely.</p>
            </blockquote>





	this place that cannot change

**Author's Note:**

  * For [easternepiphany](https://archiveofourown.org/users/easternepiphany/gifts).



> whatever, fuck it - this isn't long enough to be it's own story but livejournal's being an asshat. for kate. whatever.

Jeff expects to see them all less once he graduates. He expects to be a little lonely, he has to admit to himself. Instead, the opposite is almost true. Shirley stops by his office with left over sandwiches once or twice a week, Pierce gets a Facebook and starts sending Jeff Candy Crush requests constantly, and the trio of Annie, Abed and Troy somehow trick him into going to the movies with them for nearly every big premiere. There's only one person Jeff's actually seeing less of and yet somehow Jeff is just as lonely as he expected.

“I don’t miss her,” Jeff scoffs to Abed, who simply blinks at him in response. Jeff huffs, flops back into his seat. “Screw you, Abed.”

“Hey,” Annie hisses, leaning out from her spot in the aisle seat. She jabs a finger in Jeff’s general direction, misaimed slightly in the dark of the theatre. “Some of us are actually excited to see how Katniss’s story progresses, okay? If you two keep this up, I will talk to an usher.”

“Don’t mind her, she’s just in a bad mood because Troy spoiled Mockingjay earlier,” Abed says. Jeff wonders momentarily how he has friends who read, nearly comments on the fact when Abed cocks his head. “Oh, that’s odd, I thought they were sort of played out.”

Jeff follows his gaze and finds Troy walking in with a bucket of popcorn under one arm, and the other gesturing Britta to where they’re seated. If Jeff clenches his jaw at the sight, no one can see it in the dark of the theatre. He looks down at his phone, ready to make an excuse and leave, when she kicks at his leg.

“C’mon, let me by Winger,” Britta says and he looks up and she’s just smiling at him. Crosses her arm when he doesn’t move his leg, but otherwise seems completely normal with him. When he stands to let her by, she brushes past him without a thanks, then flops into the seat next to him. Jeff stares steadfastly at the back of the seat ahead of him as she practically spills herself over the armrest. “So, I guess the kid dies in the next one. Troy’s ruining the movie for everyone else, so I figured you ought to be included.”

“Oh, is Troy?” Jeff comments, then snaps his mouth shut. In his peripheral vision, he can see her mouth turn up, a truly shit-eating grin. He turns and she nods, looking too amused. Jeff does the mature thing – he shoves his elbow at the armrest, pushing hers off. “I think this is my armrest.”

“It is not – finders keepers, Winger,” Britta says. When Jeff simply smirks, turning back to the movie screen – which is starting the first trailer – Britta takes the chance to yank a few of his arm hairs out. Jeff yelps and pulls his arm to his chest. Britta grips the armrest white-knuckled.

“I want that armrest,” Jeff hisses, poking at Britta’s upper arm.

“Too bad,” Britta crows. Jeff glares, then drops his elbow onto the armrest. It lands on her arm and she squeaks – a little high-pitched noise – and smacks his chest with her other arm. 

“Get off,” she practically yells.

“It’s my armrest,” Jeff shouts back. 

Hands clamp down on their shoulders and Jeff swivels to find a greasy-haired usher frowning down at them. “It’s neither of yours, you’re both out of here.”

Britta waits until they get out the theatre before she turns on him. Her mouth is twisted up into what Pierce usually refers to as ‘sour face’ and Jeff shouldn’t think it’s as cute as he does.

“I actually wanted to see that,” she says. 

“I’m sure Troy will go with you some other time,” Jeff says and moves to head to his car. He hears Britta groan, then the double-time of her steps as she catches up to him.

“I want to see it because it’s one of the biggest female-led movie franchises, I didn’t even come with them,” Britta says as she falls into step with him. She crosses her arms when he looks down to her. “Besides, aren’t you worried about what Annie will do if she starts crying and you aren’t there for her?”

“I was sitting by Abed” Jeff says simply. Britta looks up at him, looking rather exasperated.

“I was sitting by you,” Britta says, then she turns on her heel and marches away. “Good night, Jeff.”

Jeff actually manages to beat her back to her apartment, leans as casually as he can against her door. When she walks up, she has a bundle of Chinese food containers in one hand and the other digging through her purse. She looks up and he thinks she should be more surprised.

“I got your stupid moo-goo-gai-pan,” Britta says simply, shoving the Chinese food at him. He takes it and smiles over the top of them at her. “Oh shut up, if we need a beer run, that’s on you.”

“How’d you know I’d show up?” Jeff asks and it feels like he’s broken some unspoken rule between them. Except, she just admitted to buying his favorite Chinese dish – the one that makes her feel like an idiot when ordering it, she had told him once, so maybe they’re on equal grounds.

“Honestly?” Britta says, pausing as she shoves her door open. “I was figuring it’d be tomorrow morning, but Chinese food will keep. Other than that, it’s just, I d’know. It’s you and me, I guess, whatever, y’know.”

Jeff watches her cross her arms, look down at somewhere around his shins as she speaks. He’s glad she’s not looking at him, because his smile is entirely too wide, he thinks. Britta looks up just as he thinks this and smiles at his expression. Jeff wants to ask – nearly does ask – why she never visited him or called him or anything. Instead, he follows her into her kitchen and sets the Chinese on the counter.

“You’re right, y’know,” he says as she leans one hip against the counter, watching him move the soy sauce to sit upright.

“About?” Britta asks, too well-versed in Jeff to assume he means in general. Jeff turns and leans against the counter, his hand resting not even an inch from hers.

“The Chinese can keep,” he says and it’s a little cheesy, makes her laugh. He catches the laugh as it escapes her lips, crosses the few inches between them.

 

Jeff doesn’t feel as lonely after that.


End file.
